Vehicles are typically equipped with a display apparatus for use in a vehicle to display measurements, such as vehicle speed and engine rpm. Such a display apparatus for use in a vehicle includes a meter case that houses a dial including on its surface a scale and an index, such as numerals, characters, or symbols, a pointer placed on the front of the dial, an internal mechanism to actuate the pointer in accordance with measured quantities, and a wiring board on which a circuit pattern is arranged and the internal mechanism is fixed.
A conventional display apparatus for use in a vehicle is accommodated in an instrument panel of a vehicle with the surface of a meter such as the dial covered with a face glass sheet. A face glass sheet of the type employed in such a conventional display apparatus for use in a vehicle is problematic in that, when used in a flat shape and placed perpendicularly to a driver, reflections of the clothing and face of the driver in the face glass sheet cause the indicator arranged beyond the face glass sheet to be less visible.
FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of a conventional display apparatus for use in a vehicle having a configuration typically employed to solve such a problem. With reference to FIG. 9, to prevent reflections of a person or the lower side in a face glass sheet 200, which is positioned before an indicator 100, and to prevent extraneous light from reflecting off the face glass sheet 200 to become visible when the indicator 100 is viewed from an eye point EP, a hood shaped structure or a meter hood 900 is provided in such a manner that the reflection off the surface of the face glass sheet 200 converges on a back surface of the hood 900 and thereby the visibility of the indicator 100 is ensured. This is problematic, however, in that the need for the meter hood 900 affects the degree of design freedom.
FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram illustrating another example of a conventional display apparatus for use in a vehicle. With reference to FIG. 10, the display apparatus is designed such that the reflection off the surface of a face glass sheet 200 is downward when an indicator 100 is viewed from the eye point, and thereby the reflected light off the face glass sheet 200 converges on a dark reflection receiving surface 600a provided on an instrument panel 600 to ensure the visibility of the indicator 100. This is, however, also problematic in that the need to provide the dark reflection receiving surface 600a at a position that is on the surface of the instrument panel 600 and visible to an occupant affects the degree of design freedom.
A display apparatus for use in a vehicle having a configuration to solve such problems is disclosed in Patent Literature 1. As illustrated in FIG. 11, the display apparatus for use in a vehicle includes an indicator 100 housed in an instrument panel 600 of a vehicle 50, a face glass sheet 200 disposed between the indicator 100 and a driver of the vehicle 500 in such a manner that the indicator 100 is visible to the driver, and a dark ceiling portion 300 formed in a ceiling 700 inside the vehicle 500 at a position toward the front of a driver seat 800 of the vehicle 50. The face glass sheet 200 has a concave section in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle 500, with the concave surface directed to the driver side from an edge of the instrument panel 600. The face glass sheet 200 includes a reflection portion 210 that reflects light L from an eye range ER of the vehicle 50 to the dark ceiling portion 300 so that the reflection of the dark ceiling portion 300 is in the reflection portion 210.
With the display apparatus for use in a vehicle having the structure described above, the light from the eye range ER of the vehicle 500 is reflected off the surface of the face glass sheet 200 and the surface reflected light travels toward the dark ceiling portion 300 provided inside the vehicle. Thus, the surface reflected light allows the reflection of the dark ceiling portion 300 to be in the reflection portion 25 of the face glass sheet 200. Placing the dark ceiling portion 300 at the position toward the front of the driver seat can also prevent the reflections of the face and the like of the driver in the reflection portion 210.